Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday condemned the “extremist” vandals who doused the house of Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir with red paint earlier in the day.
“The IDF, under the leadership of the Chief of Staff, is acting with morality and determination to defeat Hamas and bring all our hostages home. Any attempt to harm him or his commanders must be denounced,” said Netanyahu.
“I call on law enforcement authorities to bring the perpetrators of this despicable act to justice,” he added.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid decried the vandals as well, calling them a “small minority of radicals. We stand behind the IDF, its commanders and fighters,” according to Ynet.
Dozens of protesters from the Israeli Standing Together NGO demonstrated earlier in the day outside Zamir’s private residence in Hod Hasharon, accompanied by self-described IDF soldiers and reservists from the Soldiers for Hostages group.
The vandals also sprayed the nearby road with graffiti, according to Channel 12 News.
The red paint symbolized “the rivers of blood that will be spilled if Israel invades Gaza again, endangering the hostages and killing innocent people,” according to a statement put out by Standing Together.
It added that the order to conquer Gaza City was “an illegal order, [with] a black flag waving over it.”
Eight people were arrested for disrupting public order and causing damage to public and private property, according to police.
“The Israel Police considers the right to protest to be a cornerstone of a democratic state and allows protests as long as they are held within the framework of the law,” police stated.
“At the same time, the police will not allow any kind of disorder or violation of freedom of movement, or any behavior that may endanger the safety of the public.”
Zamir said on Friday that the IDF continued to strike Hamas targets and was enhancing its focus on the Gaza City area. “And we will intensify our efforts in the coming weeks,” he added.
Meanwhile, Yotam Vilk, a member of Soldiers for Hostages, published an opinion piece in the New York Times on Saturday calling on Israeli soldiers to refuse to serve in Gaza.
“I implore my fellow soldiers: Refuse to report. Thousands have already stopped showing up. Some have been sent to prison. Many remain silent. This is the time to speak,” he wrote.
Israel has been fighting against Hamas for more than 22 months in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre, which resulted in over 1,200 people dead and 251 more kidnapped. The Hamas-led invasion was the deadliest single-day attack in the country’s history.
